Find a Way to Say YES More

Just once today, I want you to pause for a moment before responding, take a deep breath, and instead of saying “no thanks”, “I doubt it”, or “yes, but” just take a leap of faith and say YES.

Just once. Today.

Then see if you can’t do it (just once per day) every day for the rest of the week.

Then let me know what happens.

I haven’t seen Jim Carrey’s caricature of this concept in “Yes Man” nor do I intend to, but the point is still there buried beneath the silliness. Stop telling people all the reasons why not. They already know these reasons. You think you are managing risk? You are suppressing innovation.

Start small and see what happens. This is not a call to go bungee jumping or punch your boss. It’s just a psychological lever for pushing yourself slightly outside of your comfort zone in the remote hopes that you just might surprise yourself and succeed. Or better yet, you just might surprise your team!

The more frequently you offer reasons why a team members’ contribution cannot be incorporated, the less frequently they will provide innovative contributions. The reverse is therefore also true. Your individual capacity for innovation is dwarfed by that of your team. When they see you working out on the edges of your comfort zone, slowly but surely, they are likely to join you there as well, creating unimaginable results.

Get the most out of your team by saying “Yes” just one more time, today and every day.

Let’s get started…

I am Adam Searcy, welcome to my blog about professional project management.

I am a professional civil engineer specializing in major transportation project management and project delivery.
My primary purpose as a Project Manager is to facilitate the cooperative efforts of teams of professionals to deliver innovative and valuable civil engineering solutions.